Passenger restraining lap/shoulder belts for automotive vehicles have been used for many years as a safety device to prevent injury to a passenger during an automobile accident. Lap/shoulder seat belts have been successful in saving many lives and preventing major injuries to the passenger. Typical seat belts include a lap belt which extends across the lap of the passenger and a shoulder harness that extends in front of and across a shoulder and the chest of the passenger. With this construction, the passenger is constrained from violent forward motion which would result due to an impact or collision. Generally, seat belts have a locking mechanism that is automatically activated when a seat belt is suddenly pulled. Thus, the passenger is safely constrained between the seat belt and the back rest of the passenger seat.
However, a problem still occurs when, for instance, during a rear end collision, the back rest of the passenger seat breaks or fails leaving the passenger free to be propelled rearwardly and subject to injury.
This invention seeks to overcome the above-mentioned problem by providing a seat belt construction that not only restrains the passenger in the forward direction, but also supports the back rest of the passenger seat to constrain the passenger in the rearward direction in the event that the back rest fails.